Team Kenya was again in a celebratory mood after the 7th round of the 2022 Chennai Olympiad. The Open team whitewashed Papua New Guinea 4-0 while the Ladies did the same to Sudan. A great day indeed!
Martin Njoroge continues to bulldoze his way through the event and now has six points from seven rounds. In round seven he crushed Rupert Jones of Papua New Guinea who was a long term resident of Botswana several years ago and he has even visited Nairobi to play in the 1990 Kenya Open.
His victories will mean that he will now cross the 2000 Elo barrier when the following rating list comes out on 1st September 2022.
Uganda defeated Somalia 4-0 while Tanzania overcame the US Virgin Islands 2.5-1.5.
Egypt held Ireland to a 2-2 draw while Zambia overcame Thailand 2.5-1.5. Zimbabwe punched above their weight with a 2-2 draw against higher-ranked South Africa.
Armenia continues to hold the lead after clinching a dramatic draw against the USA. The USA led the match when Sam Shankland played an illegal move on move 91.
He assumed that his opponent Robert Hovhannisyan played 90…Qh1+ and tried to play 91.Kb1-c2. Instead, the Armenian had played 90…Qg2, so Shankland’s move would be illegal. As he had touched his King, Shankland had to make a move with this King, and the only move possible was Qc1 which leads to checkmate! You can watch the dramatic moment here..
India is at the top of the standings in the Ladies’ section. In round seven, they defeated Azerbaijan 2.5-1.5 and now face Ukraine in round eight.
Links
The 2022 Chess Olympiad: Opening Ceremony.
2022 Chennai Olympiad – Round 1 report.
2022 Chennai Olympiad – Round 2 report.
2022 Chennai Olympiad – Round 3 report.
2022 Chennai Olympiad – Round 4 report.
2022 Chennai Olympiad Round 5 report.
2022 Chennai Olympiad – Round 6 report.
More photos of the Opening Ceremony.
2022 Chess Olympiad on chess-results.com.
2022 Chess Olympiad – African teams on the way.
Kenya Chess Masala
